WEBVTT >> THE FAILURE OF OROVILLE DAM'SPRIMARY SPILLWAY WAS INEVITABLE.>> DID IT SURPRISE ME?UNFORTUNATELY, NO, IT DIDN'TSURPRISE ME BECAUSE I KNOW HOWTHE INDUSTRY WORKS.>> THE STATE'S INDEPENDENTFORENSIC TEAM AT THE STATECAPITOL EXPLAINING THESPILLWAYS' FLAWS ARE ROOTED INITS INITIAL DESIGN.>> THE SLAB HAD FROM THE VERYBEGINNING, IN 1969 -- THERE WERECRACKS.>> AS WELL AS NEGLECT TO REPAIRDAMAGE, UNKNOWINGLY ERODING THEGROUND BELOW.>> WHAT I AM TRYING TOUNDERSTAND IS WHAT APPEARS TO BECANARIES IN THE COAL MINE THATWERE IGNORED.>> THE CANARIES MAY HAVE BEEN INTHE COAL MINE BUT THEY WERE IN ADEEP SECTION OF THE COAL MINETHAT WASN'T BEING WORKEDANYMORE.>> DEPARTMENT OF WATER RESOURCESALSO IN THE LINE OF STRONGQUESTIONING.>> IT IS NATURAL TO FEELDEFENSIVE AND UNDER THEMICROSCOPE.BECAUSE YOU ARE.>> WE FEEL VERY FORTUNATE THEREWERE NO LIVES LOST.>> ULTIMATELY, THE EVACUATION OF188,000 RESIDENTS LAST FEBRUARY-- DECADES IN THE MAKING.>> IT SOUNDS LIKE THERE WAS ALOT OF COMPLACENCY AND PEOPLEDIDN'T UNDERSTAND WHAT THEIRROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES WERE.>> AT NO POINT IN THE LAST 50YEARS DID ANYBODY EVER GO BACKAND LOOK AT THAT DESIGN AND SAYHOW YOU KNOW WHAT WE HAVEPROBLEMS AND WE HAVE TO DOSOMETHING ABOUT IT.>> AS THE FINAL STAGES OFCONSTRUCTION CONTINUE ON BOTHSPILLWAYS, THE MOST DIFFICULTREPAIR -- MENDING THE FRACTUREDRELATIONSHIP WITH COMMUNITIESDOWNSTREAM.>> THERE IS NO TRUST.THE AGENCY IS NOT TRUSTED.AND I WOULD SAY, ASSEMBLY MEMBER

"We are very fortunate there were no lives lost," Cindy Messer with DWR said. “The department recognizes there were 188,000 people that had to evacuate their homes, and that this was a very terrifying experience for them.”

John French heads the independent forensic team and responded to questions from lawmakers at the state Capitol Wednesday.

"The incident was caused by a long-term systemic failure," French said. "A failure of that practice to recognize and address what were inherent design and construction weaknesses, poor bedrock quality, and deteriorated service spillway chute conditions. And because of that sort-of broad, everybody touching it, we really can't reasonably blame a single organization or a single individual."

The independent report concluded cracks back from 1969 became normalized and overlooked, coupled with incorrect geology data, unknowingly eroded the ground below over the decades.

“These cracks and flows became accepted as normal,” French explained. "When you note the inspection report, they note the cracks are there, the drain flows are there, but there is no comment or concern. Because it wasn't identified as a serious defect, the repairs tended to be relatively shallow repairs."

The report makes clear the crisis at Oroville Dam is a symptom of a deep-rooted problem across the dam industry as a whole.

"We feel there was some overconfidence and complacency,” French said. “It's not that DWR is at the bottom of the pack. They are right in the middle. There are a lot of them that are like that."

French, along with Messer and Joel Ledesma representing DWR, received bipartisan questioning during the Assembly committee hearing.

Assembly member James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, was among those who evacuated with his family.

"Over time, this very clearly shows in the report that the organization at some point created this mythology that it was all competent rock and there were no problems," Gallagher said. “At no point in the last 50 years did anybody ever go back and look at that design and say, ‘You know what, we have problems and we have to do something about it.’"

State Sen. Jim Nielsen, R-Tehama County, represents residents who evacuated during the crisis and mentioned the need for DWR to be transparent in its improvements to repair the fractured relationship with the community.

“We like you personally, you've been great under the pressure,” Nielsen said. “But there is no trust. The agency is not trusted. And I would say Assembly member Gallagher and I don't trust you either in many respects.”

Davis is heading back to his prior position to head the Sonoma County Water Agency.

Other changes include creating a new deputy director job tasked with flood management, dam safety and dam operations.

The dam-safety experts had said the water agency lacked a top executive in charge of dam safety.

"It is a very uncomfortable place,” Messer with DWR said. “But I will say that the silver lining of it, is it will move us forward in terms of changes,improvements and enhancements-- probably at a faster pace."